Avangrid Renewables LLC, a subsidiary of AVANGRID Inc., has entered into a host community agreement with the Town of Barnstable for the Park City Wind project. The agreement will be filed with the Massachusetts Energy Facilities Siting Board (EFSB).
“The Town of Barnstable is proud to continue to play a leadership role in our nation’s transition to clean energy,” states Mark Ells, Barnstable’s town manager. “Hosting a second cable landing in Barnstable has allowed the Commonwealth to continue its efforts to chart a course for clean energy and climate action. The signing of a host community agreement with Park City Wind is a reflection of the strong community support for this clean energy initiative.”
“The project and associated host community agreement will foster robust communication, cooperative planning and coordinated construction activities that will advance the town’s sewer project, while providing millions of dollars in tax revenue and mitigation payments over the life of the project,” Ells adds. “We look forward to a productive relationship with Park City Wind as they continue with their efforts to provide clean and cost-effective energy.”
The Park City Wind host community agreement is the second offshore wind benefits package signed by the Town of Barnstable, and follows the agreement the town signed for Vineyard Wind 1 in 2018. Avangrid Renewables is a 50% joint owner of the Vineyard Wind project, along with Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners.
“As we continue to advance this vital new clean energy industry, Avangrid Renewables is honored to work with the Town of Barnstable, which has demonstrated tremendous leadership in helping make offshore wind in the U.S. a reality,” says Bill White, Avangrid Renewables’ president and CEO, Offshore. “By limiting construction to non-summer months, aligning with the town’s sewer line installation work, and infusing significant revenue to support essential municipal services, this plan is a win-win for the Town of Barnstable and our mutual goal to build transformational clean energy projects like Park City Wind.”
As part of the agreement, Avangrid Renewables will pay the town $16 million as a host community fee, above and beyond the applicable commercial taxes that will be assessed by the town. Additionally, Avangrid Renewables will limit construction at the beach and along roadways to the non-summer months and will restore the western portion of the parking lot at Craigville Beach, which will be used for temporary staging. Avangrid Renewables has also committed to taking extra measures, above and beyond standard engineering practice, to protect groundwater in Barnstable.
The Town of Barnstable will support electric transmission cables from the project to make an underground landfall at Craigville Beach and run underground along town roads to a newly constructed substation at Shootflying Hill Road. Avangrid Renewables will coordinate with the planned installation of a municipal sewer line along the onshore route to minimize disruption and defray some of the town’s sewer line roadwork costs.
Park City Wind is an 800 MW offshore wind project that was awarded a contract with Connecticut in 2019. The project will provide enough clean energy to power approximately 400,000 homes per year and cut greenhouse gases by approximately 1.1 million tons annually, the equivalent of taking more than 200,000 cars off the road. In addition to Park City Wind, Avangrid Renewables is developing the 1200 MW Commonwealth Wind project, providing more than 2 GW of clean, renewable energy to the New England market.
Park City Wind is currently engaged in the federal and state permitting process, consulting with tribal and local agencies, including the Barnstable, Edgartown, Nantucket Conservation Commissions and the Cape Cod Commission. The project is scheduled to be completed in 2026.
